Research Focus Figure | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA 2019 G6:M4:U2:L14

Research Focus Figure

In this Lesson

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Focus Standards: These are the standards the instruction addresses.

  • RI.6.1, RI.6.3, W.6.1, W.6.7, W.6.8, W.6.9b

Supporting Standards:

  • RI.6.10, W.6.10, SL.6.1
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Daily Learning Targets

  • I can gather evidence and develop reasoning for an argument essay about Katherine Johnson's or Mary Jackson's remarkable accomplishments. (W.6.1)
  • I can conduct a short research project, draw on several sources, and gather relevant information to narrow down my focus figure options. (W.6.7, W.6.8)

Ongoing Assessment

  • Opening A: Entrance Ticket: Unit 2, Lesson 14 (W.6.7, W.6.10)
  • Work Time A: Collaborative Argument Evidence note-catcher (RI.6.1, RI.6.3, W.6.1, W.6.9b, W.6.10)
  • Work Time B: Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher (RI.6.1, RI.6.3, W.6.1, W.6.7, W.6.8, W.6.9b, W.6.10)

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Engage the Learner - W.6.7, W.6.10 (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Gather Evidence: Hidden Figures, Chapters 20 and 21 - W.6.1b (20 minutes)

B. Research Focus Figure - W.6.7, W.6.8 (15 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Share Research - SL.6.1 (5 minutes)

4. Homework

A. Research Focus Figure: Students continue to research their focus figure and add information to the Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher.

B. Preread Anchor Text: Students preread chapters 22 and 23 in Hidden Figures in preparation for studying these chapters in the next lesson.

Alignment to Assessment Standards and Purpose of Lesson

  • W.6.7 – Opening A: Students complete an entrance ticket in which they pose questions that will help them conduct a research project.
  • RI.6.1 – Work Time A: Students gather textual evidence to support their claims in the collaborative argument essay. They add this evidence to their Collaborative Argument Evidence note-catchers.
  • RI.6.3 – Work Time A: Students analyze the way in which Margot Lee Shetterly illustrates and elaborates on the accomplishments of the hidden figures in the text and add notes to their note-catchers.
  • W.6.1 – Work Time A: Students add relevant evidence to their note-catchers, which they will use to write arguments that support claims about Mary or Katherine.
  • W.6.9b – Work Time A: Students gather relevant evidence from a literary nonfiction text, Hidden Figures, to write arguments that support claims about Mary or Katherine.
  • W.6.7 – Work Time B: Students begin to conduct research about a focus figure, who will serve as the subject of their independent argument essays in Unit 3.
  • W.6.8 – Work Time B: As they conduct research, students gather relevant information from multiple sources. They paraphrase data to avoid plagiarism and provide bibliographic information for each source.

Opportunities to Extend Learning

  • Invite students to create a collage incorporating words and images that represent the scientific, political, and social context around the Apollo 11 mission. This hands-on activity provides an opportunity for students who thrive through visual learning and creative representation.
  • The astronaut crews on each mission are in charge of designing their team’s unique mission patch with symbols, words, and numbers relevant to their mission goals. Build a sense of teamwork and purpose by allowing the newly assembled crews for the performance task to design a mission patch.

How It Builds on Previous Work

  • In Lesson 13, students were introduced to the performance task and its related argument essay and the list of possible focus figures to research. They chose their top three options for a focus figure to research. Based on those preferences, crews of three were determined. Those crews will be announced in this lesson. Students will begin their independent research to support the argument essay and the children’s book pages in this lesson.
  • Students will also read two more chapters in Hidden Figures and, as the text is coming to a close, begin to synthesize their learning by revisiting the module guiding questions.

Support All Students

  • For the guiding question work during Work Time A, prepare questions to ask students if they are struggling to identify evidence within the text that supports the guiding questions.
  • Consider social and academic factors when assigning the crews for research. Students who are academically strong may be used to doing the heaviest workload. Pairing those students with students who are not as academically accomplished but have the initiative and integrity to contribute to the group.
  • Revisit some of the research mini lessons in Module 2 for students who seem overwhelmed by the research task.
  • Note that the opportunity to conduct research engages students with a variety of modalities and access points supporting multiple intelligences, aligning with the multiple means of representation, action and expression, and engagement that are part of Universal Design for Learning.
  • Independent research, which combines literacy and digital skills in a new way, may be challenging for ELLs. Provide specific suggestions (e.g., for websites/texts to visit for information, for search terms to use) as a way to streamline the research process. ▲
  • Provide students with sentence stems to complete before allowing them to proceed with research. The sentence stems will guide students to think about the type of information they should gather.

Assessment Guidance

  • Review students’ entries on their Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher to ensure that recorded textual evidence is appropriate, relevant, and comprehensive. Remind students that this note-catcher serves as preparation for the independent essays they will write in Unit 3; the more effort they put into the note-catcher now, the easier the writing task will be later.

Down the Road

  • In the next lesson, students will continue the research on their focus figure. Students will also read the final chapter of the anchor text and compare two authors’ presentations of the moon landing.

In Advance

  • Read chapters 20 and 21 in Hidden Figures in advance to identify plot points and vocabulary that may require clarification or sensitivity.
  • Predetermine reading pairs for Work Time A.
  • Predetermine "crews" for the performance task. Use the top three choices students provided in the previous lesson as well as group dynamics to form crews. Post the groups on chart paper or an external display for easy reference.
  • Gather computers or tablets necessary for students to begin research online during Work Time B. Ensure computers are logged in and in good working order. Provide plenty of research texts as well; a resurgence of interest in this topic has led to a number of newly published books that uncover hidden figures as students will be doing for the performance task.
  • Post the central research question for students to easily reference as they work: why are my focus figure's accomplishments remarkable?
  • Make a list of credible and useful online sources students should reference to help them get started with their research, such as NASA.gov and Space.com.
  • Review the student tasks and example answers to get familiar with what students will be required to do in the lesson (see Materials list).
  • Prepare copies of handouts for students, including entrance ticket (see Materials list).
  • Post the learning targets and applicable anchor charts (see Materials list).

Tech and Multimedia

  • Work Time B: Provide devices for students to conduct online research.
  • Work Time B: Students may prefer to work in a an online spreadsheet like http://eled.org/0255 to compile the textual evidence answering the guiding questions.

Supporting English Language Learners

Supports guided in part by CA ELD Standards 6.I.A.1, 6.I.A.2, 6.I.A.6, and 6.I.B.8.

Important Points in the Lesson Itself

  • To support ELLs, this lesson offers additional time for students to research their focus figures in preparation for the independent argument essay and performance task. Students receive a note-catcher to help them organize their research findings; this note-catcher is supportive of ELLs because its format is very similar to a note-catcher students worked with in Module 2. The familiar rows of the note-catcher, on which students record source information and explain what makes them credible, clarify expectations and allow students to preserve their cognitive energy for interpreting their research sources, rather than their materials. This lesson also features a paired reading activity: within a pair, one student reads chapter 20 of the anchor text and the other reads chapter 21, then they share their gist findings with each other. As with a jigsaw, this activity is supportive of ELLs because it reduces the amount of reading students are independently accountable for and integrates reading and collaborative speaking skills.
  • ELLs may find it challenging to begin a research project, even after carrying out a research project in Module 2. Remind students that three students are assigned to each focus figure. Although students will be conducting research and writing argument essays independently, it may make students feel more comfortable and less isolated to recall that other students are working with the same focus figure. In Closing and Assessment A, students will even have the opportunity to share their research findings from Work Time B with the other members of their triads. If productive, create additional opportunities throughout the research process for students to check in with one another, clarify key details about the focus figure, and guide one another in locating resources that may be especially useful.

Vocabulary

  • N/A

Materials from Previous Lessons

Teacher

Student

  • Researchers Do These Things anchor chart (one for display; from Module 2, Unit 2, Lesson 5, Work Time B)
  • Module Guiding Questions anchor chart (one for display; from Module 4, Unit 1, Lesson 1, Work Time C)
  • Gists: Hidden Figures anchor chart (example for teacher reference) (from Module 4, Unit 2, Lesson 1, Work Time A)
  • Gists: Hidden Figures anchor chart (one for display; from Module 4, Unit 2, Lesson 1, Work Time A)
  • Text Guide: Hidden Figures (Young Readers' Edition) (for teacher reference) (from Module 4, Unit 2, Lesson 1, Work Time A)
  • Collaborative Argument Evidence note-catcher (example for teacher reference) (from Module 4, Unit 2, Lesson 9, Opening A)
  • Work to Become Ethical People anchor chart (one for display; from Module 1, Unit 1, Lesson 1, Work Time C)
  • Work to Contribute to a Better World anchor chart (one for display; from Module 1, Unit 3, Lesson 8, Closing and Assessment A)
  • Performance Task: Picture Book Directions (one per student; from Module 4, Unit 2, Lesson 13, Work Time B)
  • Hidden Figures (Young Readers' Edition) (text; one per student; from Module 4, Unit 1, Lesson 1, Opening A)
  • Collaborative Argument Evidence note-catcher (one per student; from Module 4, Unit 2, Lesson 9, Opening A)

New Materials

Teacher

Student

  • Entrance Ticket: Unit 2, Lesson 14 (example for teacher reference)
  • Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher (example for teacher reference)
  • Entrance Ticket: Unit 2, Lesson 14 (one per student)
  • Sticky notes (four per student)
  • Synopsis: Hidden Figures, Chapters 20 and 21 (one per student)
  • Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher (one per student)
  • Device for online research (one per student)

Assessment

Each unit in the 6-8 Language Arts Curriculum has two standards-based assessments built in, one mid-unit assessment and one end of unit assessment. The module concludes with a performance task at the end of Unit 3 to synthesize students' understanding of what they accomplished through supported, standards-based writing.

Opening

Opening

A. Engage the Learner - W.6.7, W.6.10 (5 minutes)

  • Repeated routine: Follow the same routine as in previous lessons to distribute and review the Entrance Ticket: Unit 2, Lesson 14. Students will also need to reference the Performance Task: Picture Book Directions and the Researchers Do These Things anchor chart.
  • Repeated routine: Follow the same routine as in previous lessons to review learning targets and the purpose of the lesson, reminding students of any learning targets that are similar or the same as previous lessons. Invite students to choose a habit of character focus for themselves for this lesson.

Work Time

Work TimeLevels of Support

A. Gather Evidence: Hidden Figures, Chapters 20 and 21 - W.6.1b (20 minutes)

  • Review the learning target relevant to the work to be completed in this section of the lesson:

"I can gather evidence and develop reasoning for an argument essay about Katherine Johnson's or Mary Jackson's remarkable accomplishments."

  • Move students into pairs. Explain that each person in the partnership will read either chapter 20 or chapter 21 in Hidden Figures. Determine who will read chapter 20 and who will read chapter 21.
  • Display the Module Guiding Questions anchor chart. Cold-call a student to read aloud the first guiding question:

"What was the Apollo 11 mission, and in what scientific, political, and social context did it take place?"

  • Students will be using sticky notes to collect two pieces of evidence to answer this guiding question. Clarify that students will focus on the section of the guiding question that identifies the "scientific, political, and social context." Remind students that the Apollo 11 mission has not yet happened in the chapters they will read, but the text is setting up the context for the event.
  • Students should also document their chapter's gist, unpack and record unfamiliar vocabulary, and record any remarkable accomplishments by Vaughan, Jackson, or Johnson.
  • Circulate and monitor as students read. Update the Gists: Hidden Figures anchor chart, and refer to the Gists: Hidden Figures anchor chart (example for teacher reference), Text Guide: Hidden Figures, and chapter synopsis as needed, as well as any other appropriate resources.
  • Gist of Chapter 20:
    • The West Computing Office closed, and the computers were assigned to other divisions. Dorothy Vaughan was assigned to the Analysis and Computation Division, which had calculating machines to do the computing work, so Vaughan became a computer programmer.
    • Project Mercury's timeline continued to increase. Freedom 7 was successful in a suborbital flight.
    • President Kennedy challenged NASA to place a man on the moon. Mission Control moved to Houston, Texas.
  • Gist of Chapter 21:
    • John Glenn was chosen as the astronaut for the United States' first orbital flight.
    • Glenn asked for the math done by the electronic computers to be double-checked. Katherine Johnson took a day and a half to complete the check of the calculations.
    • Friendship 7 completed three orbits. John Glenn safely returned to Earth.
  • Direct students to share their gist statements with their partner and add any remarkable accomplishments by Jackson or Johnson to their Collaborative Argument Evidence note-catcher. Refer to Collaborative Argument Evidence note-catcher (example for teacher reference).
  • Use a total participation technique to promote discussion of the answers to the guiding question based on the students' evidence. Add student responses to the Module Guiding Questions anchor chart.
  • Repeated routine: invite students to reflect on their progress toward the relevant learning target.

For Lighter Support

  • Invite students who need lighter support to summarize aloud some of the key research principles they remember from their research projects in Module 2. Allocate time for students to revisit the Researcher's Toolbox handout from Module 2 (Unit 2, Lesson 6) to refresh their memories.

For Heavier Support

  • N/A

B. Research Focus Figure - W.6.7, W.6.8 (15 minutes)

  • Review the learning target relevant to the work to be completed in this section of the lesson:

"I can conduct a short research project, draw on several sources, and gather relevant information to narrow down my focus figure options."

  • Post the crewmate assignments for the performance task and its related argument writing.
  • Remind students of the habits of collaboration and respect. Inform students that their crewmates may not be their best friends, but they still have a responsibility to respect all crewmates' contributions to the efforts of the group.
  • Distribute and display the Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher. Remind students that they used an almost identical research note-catcher in Module 2. Point to the Central Research Question at the top of the note-catcher, and read it aloud: Central Research Question: Why are my focus figure's accomplishments remarkable? Explain to students that they will now have the opportunity to begin some preliminary research about the focus figure they have been assigned.
  • Distribute devices for online research. Focus students on the Work to Become Ethical People anchor chart. Remind students that when working on technology it is important to uplift the habit of integrity by only accessing the relevant information needed for their research. Focus students on the Work to Contribute to a Better World anchor chart. Remind students that when working on technology it is important to take care of and improve our shared spaces. This means handling the devices carefully and cleaning them up properly at the end of the research time.
  • Invite students to begin individually researching their focus figure, starting to gather information on the Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher. Circulate and monitor student activity. Refer students to their Entrance Ticket: Unit 2, Lesson 14 for questions that can help guide their research. Refer to Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher (example for teacher reference) as needed.
  • Repeated routine: invite students to reflect on their progress toward the relevant learning target.

For Lighter Support

  • Invite students who need lighter support to summarize aloud some of the key research principles they remember from their research projects in Module 2. Allocate time for students to revisit the Researcher's Toolbox handout from Module 2 (Unit 2, Lesson 6) to refresh their memories.

For Heavier Support

  • N/A

Closing & Assessments

ClosingLevels of Support

A. Share Research - SL.6.1 (5 minutes)

  • Invite students to gather with their crew and discuss their research findings. Encourage students to add additional information that their crewmates share to their Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher.
  • Remind students they will have more time in subsequent lessons to continue the research for their independent argument essay and the children's book pages.
  • Repeated routine: invite students to reflect on their habit of character focus for this lesson.

For Lighter Support

  • This is the final lesson in which students add to the Remarkable Accomplishments anchor chart. Create opportunities for students to engage with the content they have added to the anchor chart over the course of the unit. Ask variations of the module guiding questions to increase engagement and consolidate students' thinking:
    • According to the anchor chart, what were the primary accomplishments of the hidden figures?
    • Why were these accomplishments remarkable?
    • Why is it important to study their stories and learn about their accomplishments?

For Heavier Support

  • N/A

Homework

Homework

A. Research Focus Figure

  • Students continue to research their focus figure and add information to the Independent Argument Evidence note-catcher.

B. Preread Anchor Text

  • Students preread chapters 22 and 23 in Hidden Figures in preparation for studying these chapters in the next lesson.

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